Cross-allergy

Cross-allergy is an additional property of a common allergy. The fact is that many allergens have their "counterparts": if one allergen causes allergic reactions in a person, then it is quite possible that its "double" or even a group of "doubles" will provoke it.

The essence of the relationship of these allergens in the similarity of the structure, namely in the set of amino acids, of which they are both composed. For example, if a person has a persistent allergy to dust, then one day he may be very surprised when, after eating shrimps, he develops an allergic reaction similar to that caused by his home dust. And the whole point is that the organism because of the similarity of the organization of cells of dust and shrimp, simply confused them. The complexity of such situations is that it is not always known who is the allergen-"double" from a friend already known to you the pathogen.

The most common interactions of causative agents have already been calculated, special tables of cross reactions have been compiled (see below). 

[1], [2], [3]

Cross-allergy: table

As already mentioned above, there are many kinds of cross-allergic reactions. Here are the main, most common.

There is an allergy to	It is necessary to expect cross-allergic reactions to
Pollen:	Pollen, leaves, stems of plants:	Vegetable food products:	Medicinal plants:
Birch	Hazel, alder, apple	Birch sap, apples, cherries, plums, peaches, hazelnuts, carrots, celery, potatoes, kiwi	Birch leaf (buds), alder cones
Grass grasses	Food grains (oats, wheat, barley, etc.), sorrel	All cereals
Wormwood	Dahlias, chamomile, dandelion, sunflower	Citrus fruits, chicory, sunflower seeds (butter, halva), honey	Wormwood, chamomile, calendula, string, elecampane, mother-and-stepmother
Quinoa		Beets, spinach
Ambrosia	Sunflower, dandelion	Sunflower seeds (oil, halva), melon, bananas

[4], [5],

Cross Food Allergy

If the patient is allergic to plants or spores of fungi, allergic reactions to certain types of food are justified. A common mistake of patients is that often because of ignorance they do not associate so far from each other allergens.

Pollen or contact allergy	Foods to Avoid
Pollen of birch, alder, hazel	Forest nuts, almonds, cherries, apricots, peaches, fruits of kiwi, celery, potatoes
Wormwood Pollen	Celery, potatoes, fennel, dill, red pepper, coriander, cumin, chamomile, drinks, which include wormwood (vermouth, balsams)
Sunflower pollen	Sunflower oil, halva, mayonnaise, mustard
Pollen of ragweed	Melon, banana
Pollen herbs (rye, etc.)	Tomatoes, melons, peanuts
Fragrant Herbs	Spices, celery
Latex	Pineapple, avocado, banana, chestnut, papaya, figs, spinach, potatoes, tomatoes
Pollen of weedy, meadow grasses	Honey

Food product	Products and non-food antigens that give cross-allergic reactions
Cow's milk	Goat milk, products containing cow's milk proteins, beef, veal and meat products from them, cow wool, enzyme preparations based on the pancreas of cattle
Kefir (kefir yeast)	Moldy mushrooms, mold varieties of cheeses (roquefort, brie, dor-blus, etc.), yeast dough, kvass, antibiotics of the penicillin series, mushrooms
A fish	River and sea fish, seafood (crabs, shrimps, caviar, lobsters, lobsters, mussels, etc.), fish food (daphnia)
Egg	Chicken meat and broth, quail eggs and meat, duck meat, sauces, creams, mayonnaise with egg chicken components, pillow feather, medicines (interferon, lysozyme, bifilysis, some vaccines)
Carrot	Parsley, celery, b-carotene, vitamin A
Strawberry	Raspberries, blackberries, currants, cranberries
Apples	Pear, quince, peach, plum, birch pollen, alder, wormwood
Potatoes	Eggplants, tomatoes, green and red peppers, paprika, tobacco
Nuts (hazelnuts, etc.)	Nuts of other varieties, kiwi, mango, rice flour, buckwheat, oatmeal), sesame, poppy, birch pollen, hazel
Peanut	Soybeans, bananas, stone fruits (plum, peaches, etc.), green peas, tomatoes, latex
Bananas	Wheat gluten, kiwi, melon, avocado, latex, plantain pollen
Citrus	Grapefruit, lemon, orange, tangerine
Beet	Spinach, sugar beet
Beans	Peanuts, soybeans, peas, beans, lentils, mangoes, alfalfa
Plum	Almonds, apricots, cherries, nectarines, peaches, wild cherries, cherries, prunes, apples
Kiwi	Banana, avocado, nuts, flour (rice, buckwheat, oatmeal), sesame, latex, birch pollen, grass grasses

[6], [7]

Cross-allergy to antibiotics and other medicines

Name of the drug	A group of drugs that form cross-allergic reactions
Penicillin	All natural Penicillins, semisynthetic and durant Penicillins, Cephalosporins. Meat of birds and animals, which were fed with mixed fodders containing a / b
Levomycetin	Derivatives of the Levomycetin group, Synthomycin, their antiseptic solutions
Sulfonamides	Novocain, Trimecaine, Dicaine, Anestezine, Procaine, Paraminobenzobenzene, Novocain amide, Biseptol, Almagel-A, Solutan, PASK, Hypothiazide, Furosemide, Triampur, Butamid, Bukarban, Orabet, etc.
Streptomycin	Group Streptomycin and aminoglycosides
Tetracycline	Rondomycin, Metacyclin, Morphocycline, Glycocycline, Oletetrine, Olemphocycline, Oleandomycin. Meat of birds and animals, which were fed with mixed fodders with admixtures of a / b
Amidopyrine	Analgin, Butadion, Reopyrin, complex mixtures, which include named drugs
Pipolphen	Preparations phenothiazine series (Aminazine, Propazin, Frenolone, Etaperazin, Teralen, Neuleptin, Sonapaks, etc.)
Aminophylline (Eufillin, Diafillin)	Derivatives of ethylenediamine (Suprastin, Etambutol)
Barbital	Group of barbiturates, Teofedrine, Valocordin, Pentalgin, Antasman
Iodine	Cardiotrast, Yodilpol, Bilitrast, Bilignost, Sayiodin, Triombrin, Propyliodon, Myodil, Yopanoyeva k-ta, r-og Lugol, Antistrum, radioactive Iodine, etc.
Piperazine	Stugeron, Cinnarizin
Furacillin	Furadonin, Furazolidon, Furagin, their antiseptic solutions
Dermazolone	Enteroseptol, Mexaz, 5-NOC, Intestopan, Prednisolone
Vitamin B1	Kokarboksilaza, complex preparations, which include Thiamine

[8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15]

Symptoms of cross-allergy

The manifestations of cross-allergy are similar to the usual symptoms: the presence of allergic rhinitis, lacrimation, itching and burning on the skin, mucosal edema, bronchial asthma, urticaria, dermatitis, Quincke edema. All this symptomatology is often caused by house dust, flower pollen, animal dander, food products and, strange as it may sound, even sunlight and cold.

A unique property of cross-allergy is the gradual increase in the number of allergens-pathogens that cause the patient to have identical symptoms. In order that their number does not reach an incredible size, it is important at the outset to diagnose allergic reactions and begin their comprehensive treatment. 

Diagnosis of cross-allergy

The most reliable way to diagnose cross-allergies today is molecular diagnostics. With the help of special equipment, specialists identify a reaction not to a product, plant, etc., but to a specific protein that is part of their composition and determines the "cross" of twins.

In Ukraine today, for careful diagnosis of cross-allergic reactions, a careful history is used and specific immunodiagnosis is used to detect cross-sensitization. 

[16], [17], [18], [19], [20]

Treatment of cross-allergy

Treatment of cross-allergy differs little from the complex of measures for eliminating the usual, the difference consists in finding the main allergen giving a push to cross allergic reactions. 

In the treatment of this type of disease, the main ones are antihistamines. The second and third generation of these drugs have the best effect: claritin, cetrine, eryus, grains and others like them. Their advantage is that they do not affect the central nervous system and have no side effects, like first-generation antihistamines (no drowsiness, dry mouth, constipation, delay in urination). In general, to eliminate allergic reactions takes a week, complex cases suggest taking the drug for a period of several months.

Tseritizin (zirtek, parlazin) - is a tablet in a shell (10 mg), as well as a solution - oral drops (10 mg per ml). Adults and children over six take one tablet once a day (20 drops), children 2-6 years - 5 mg per day or 10 drops, children 1-2 years - 2.5 mg (5 drops) twice a day . Zirotake is taken from 6 months to 2.5 mg twice daily.

An easy form of the disease allows the use of derivatives of cromoglic acid. It contains eye drops, nasal sprays and aerosols.

Very often, for the treatment of cross-allergic reactions, glucosteroid preparations are used. These can be tablets and injectable solutions. Due to their application, first, the processes of exacerbation of the disease are removed, and secondly, it is a good supportive therapy to treat the disease in the future. Drugs of this group are very powerful and potent, therefore, they should be appointed by the attending physician, who will establish the necessary dosages, which can not be exceeded in any case. In the case of cross-allergies, corticosteroids are used only for special exacerbations and for a short time, since serious side effects may appear from long-term administration.

In complex treatment, the aforementioned agents supplement with leukotriene receptor antagonists and sorbents.

The effectiveness of the action of medications can be significantly facilitated by the use of SIT-specific immunotherapy. Its essence is that the patient is administered a therapeutic dose of an allergen (allergovaccin), which eventually increases. This leads to the fact that the sensitivity of the patient to re-exposure of the allergen is reduced.

Thus, the patient's immunity to the causative agent of allergic reactions is formed.

Prevention of cross-allergy

What kind of prevention to take to prevent cross-allergy depends on the primary pathogen. If pollen allergies cause pollen, then when allergic plants bloom, you should avoid places of their growth - most likely, there will be all kinds of parks and squares. Wearing sunglasses and gauze dressings will protect mucous, careful daily hygiene, and wet cleaning in the house will help to reduce the number of possible contacts with allergens. Taking antihistamines is also a sure way to prevent cross-allergy. If you have a food allergy, your daily diet should be carefully thought out - all possible food allergens are excluded. In this case, cosmetics and care products can only be used on which there is a neck "hypoallergenic". If an insect bite causes you to have allergic reactions, you are not allowed to use honey and other beekeeping products, in addition, it is better to refrain from eating seafood such as shrimp, mussels, lobsters, oysters, crab meat.

Often the cross-allergy is caused by raw foods. Under the influence of temperature in the preparation of food protein-allergen, which causes allergic reactions, as a rule, is destroyed. Therefore, you can try to eat cooked foods, perhaps in this form they will not provoke allergies in you. But in advance it is best to consult a doctor, so as not to cause any complications.

To take the most rational, and most importantly, effective prevention measures, you need to conduct a survey and consult an experienced allergist doctor. Only he will be able to calculate all the groups of allergens taking into account the properties and characteristics of cross-allergic reactions.

Cross-allergy is a fairly common phenomenon. When the primary immunologist determines the primary allergen and the chain of products that cause cross-allergic reactions, treatment produces a noticeable and fairly rapid effect.